Zoo News Digest is the longest established and most widely read listing of current 'zoo' related news on the internet. It notes 'real' events of interest to people working within the zoo industry. By a Zoo Professional for Zoo Professionals and other interested parties. The Digest includes comments and notification of courses and events.

Saturday, May 19, 2012

Zoo News Digest 15th - 19th May 2012 (Zoo News 816)

I was deeply saddened to learn of the passing of my friend and colleague, London Zoo Curator, John Ellis. It was not so many months ago that he showed me round the new ZSL Penguin Pool and gave me access to the library to do some research. In fact it feels just like yesterday. I first met John in a zoo related chat room on the internet something like fifteen years ago. I liked the guy then and my opinion has never changed. I have never heard a bad word said about him and I know of his dedication and commitment to his work. He will be sadly missed by many. John passed away just the other day. He was taken ill whilst attending a conference in Germany in April and had remained in hospital ever since. My condolences to friends and family.

I was interested to see that the escaped penguin (no 337) is still flourishing in Tokyo Bay. I can imagine 'Penguin Watching' boat trips springing up before too long if they are not already. I would love to see a photograph of the 13ft wall or fence this little bird was said to have scaled to escape. Whereas I have great admiration for the intelligence of Penguins, I just don't believe it.

I included the link to "Student: Zoos Not Protecting the Animals" to remind you of the ignorance that we are up against. Like so many of these well meaning people this young lady has been indoctrinated by the malicious and ignorant who have an alternative agenda. All zoos are not the same.

"Pumas may be on the loose in Scotland as cat corpse is discovered". Wow this is a bit different. They have a body. A black puma cub. Black? Now that would be unusual. I can't work out how the article is about a Puma and then goes on about Leopards and Jaguars. It is just all more hogwash. Of course you can disagree.

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Japan's fugitive penguin 'living quite happily' in Tokyo Bay
One-year-old Humboldt penguin scaled 13-foot fence to escape Tokyo aquarium in March
After Penguin Number 337 made a daring bid for freedom from a Tokyo aquarium and vanished into the waters of Tokyo Bay two months ago, many feared the worst for the adventurous feathered fugitive. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/47457051/ns/world_news-asia_pacific/

Operators of dolphin show seek new probe of cruelty raps
The operators of a dolphin show are asking a Quezon City court to order a new investigation of charges they were cruel to animals, saying they had obtained the necessary government permits for a series of shows they mounted during the Christmas season of 2010.
Operators of the Angels of the Sea Dolphin and Sea Lion Show said they were not afforded a chance to answer the charges before being indicted and asked the court to quash the warrants it had issued for their arrest and to suspend all court proceedings in the case.
This was after the summons from the Quezon City prosecutors’ office was purportedly served at the wrong address.
Jose Avelino and Ma. Carla Mamburam, key officials of Indophil Sea Wonders Co. Ltd., operator of the marine mammal show, said they were unable to respond to the initial complaint against them or attend the preliminary investigation because the Quezon City Prosecutor’s office had sent the summonses to the wrong address.
“Contrary to private complainants’ accusations, the accused did not commit cruelty to animals,” they said in their pleading, which was filed lawyers Shirley Alinea and Michael Thor Singson at the sala of Judge Caridad Walse-Lutero of the Metropolitan Trial Court’s Branch 34.
Avelino and Mamburam were charged with violating Republic Act 8485 or the Animal Welfare Act on the strength of a complaint filed against them by the Philippine Animal Welfare Society and Earth Island Institute.
The complaints alleged that the animals were subjected http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/195733/operators-of-dolphin-show-seek-new-probe-of-cruelty-raps

Goa Zoo to have aviaries for wetland, terrestrial birds
Goa's lone zoo tucked in Bondla wildlife sanctuary will soon have birds on display in two aviaries, designed for wetland and terrestrial birds.
Deputy Conservator of Forest (Wildlife) D N F Carvalho said the aviaries are planned as a part of the zoo's infrastructure upgradation, which is prominently funded by Union government's Central Zoo Authority (CZA).
This would be for the first time that this facility would be displaying birds, since its inception in 1969.
Bondla Zoo, situated 60 kms away from Panaji, has been housing only wild animals and reptiles, with no separate enclosure for birds, except Peacock.
The zoo is tucked inside Bondla wildlife sanctuary, one of the smallest sanctuaries in the state.
Carvalho said the wetland and terrestrial birds would be kept in two separate sophisticated aviaries in the zoo, creating a near natural living condition for them.
The state forest department will be studying a model of aviaries from other zoos in the country, which could be emulated here.
The exhibits here would be of the same climatic condition, he said, adding that the migratory birds would not be displayed in the aviary.
The wetland bird will have aviary with the water body inside while terrestrial bird will be in the aviary replicating http://www.business-standard.com/generalnews/news/goa-zoo-to-have-aviaries-for-wetland-terrestrial-birds/10909/

Sumatran orang-utans delay puberty to build up strength

ANY teenage boy will confirm that older boys make it impossible to get the girls. Young male orang-utans with the same problem have a unique and unexpected solution: they don't grow up until they are strong enough to challenge the dominant males.

Male orang-utans can reproduce from around age 15, but in order to attract a mate they also have to develop secondary sexual characteristics - the equivalent of men growing chest hair. These include conspicuous cheek flanges. Yet Sumatran orang-utans often delay acquiring flanges, sometimes for over 10 years. No other primates do this, not even Bornean orang-utans.

Gauri Pradhan of the University of South Florida in Tampa and colleagues noted another difference between the species: unlike Bornean males, Sumatran males can monopolise females for weeks at a time. Pradhan built mathematical models of orang-utan populations from decades of field data, and varied the extent to which males could monopolise females. She found that males that could delay maturation did better when

Student: Zoos Not Protecting the Animals
Zoos. The places where you can see wild animals. The kind of place you might enjoy, but do you know what’s happening behind the bars or fences? There is a whole life of cruelty hidden with little space, no care and “money—makers.”
Yes, it’s true—zoos don’t provide animals with enough place to live. The animals will get zoochosis as a result. Zoochosis is a term which is used to refer to a range of psychological problems associated with animals kept in captivity. Also, after conducting a study, the Born Free Foundation found that animals spend most of their time showing symptoms of stress as a result of captivity. Plus, in Milwakee County Zoo, elephants are kept in pairs or even isolated. Believe it or not, the enclosures are incredibly small.
It's not a lie that animals are not cared about in most zoos. In fact, a former director of the Atlanta Zoo said he was too removed from the animals and they were the last thing he cared about. Did you know that in most zoos, only 1/15 of the moneyhttp://bridgewater.patch.com/articles/student-zoos-not-protecting-the-animals

And the below is one zoo which is not protecting animals:

G.W. Exotic Animal Park Lets Kids Play With Tigers, Humane Society AccusesThe Humane Society of the United States is accusing an Oklahoma exotic animal park of allowing children to handle and pose for photographs with juvenile tigers in what they called "a petting zoo for carnivores."
Joe Schreibvogel, owner of the G.W. Exotic Animal Park, 65 miles (100 km) south of Oklahoma City, denies the allegations, and he said on Thursday that the humane society simply wants to bankrupt him.
Wayne Pacelle, head of the animal rights organization, contends that allowing visitors to handle the unpredictable felines placed the visitors at risk.
The Humane Society sent an undercover operative to work at the park last year to videotape what he saw, including children mingling with exotic cats that are too old to be safe playmates. The investigator witnessed or heard about six incidents in which tiger cubs bit or scratched park visitors, Pacelle http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/17/gw-exotic-animal-park_n_1526266.html

Carol McCasland: Accredited zoos save the lives of animals
Seldom do I agree with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). The letter in last Friday's Daily Camera (May 11) from PETA Representative Jennifer O'Connor was correct on two points: 1) people should not taunt animals in captivity. The video of the lioness trying to get at a baby on the other side of the glass was disgusting. 2) Children's playgrounds and other attractions do not belong in zoos.
However, as a volunteer docent at Denver Zoo, the other points the PETA rep made were totally inaccurate and very out-dated. Accredited zoos today have done much to build exhibits that provide enrichment and a positive experience for the animals they house.
Yes, there are some older exhibits that could use some updating. In time and with more money, that will happen. But never doubt that the mission of zoos today is to educate people about the animals in their care, to provide excellent physical and mental care, to research how to take care of animals left in the wild, to increase the chance the animals will have enough habitat left to live in their natural home, to work with humans in the areas where http://www.dailycamera.com/letters/ci_20655393/carol-mccasland-accredited-zoos-save-lives-animals

Minnesota Zoo dolphins exhibit will end
The Minnesota Zoo's popular dolphin program will end this fall.
The facility's two remaining dolphins will not return after repairs are made to their pool, officials said.
Dolphins, which have been exhibited at the zoo since it opened in 1978, are difficult to acquire, and the zoo would need at least one more animal to ensure proper socialization for the marine mammals, Director Lee Ehmke said Monday, May 14.
"It's a difficult decision, but it doesn't seem to be possible to create the kind of social situation we would need to have," Ehmke said.
The Minnesota Zoo recently received $4 million in the state Legislature's bonding bill to repair the aging tank.
Allie and Semo will be sent to other accredited facilities sometime this fall, and repairs to the tank will take place after http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_20619782/minnesota-zoo-dolphins-exhibit-will-end

Indonesia Denies NGO Allegations Of Dolphin, Whale Hunting
Environment officials came out on Wednesday to deny accusations that whales and dolphins were being actively killed and hunted down in Indonesian waters, despite laws prohibiting the activity.
The statement was made in response to a video and photos posted online by US-based nongovernmental organization Earth Island Institute alleging they were evidence of the killing of whales and dolphins in Indonesia.
“It is not true. How could that be? I have never heard of dolphins being hunted before,” Agus Apun Budhiman, director of fish resources at the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, said at a press conference on Wednesday.
“Local people consider them [dolphins] as man’s best friends, so they would not go after them, let alone eat or use their meat as bait,” he added.
If ever there were any whales or dolphins captured, Agus said, it would have been accidental, not deliberate.
The video posted on the NGO’s Web site showed an interview with a local fisherman in Flores describing how dolphins are captured using home-made bombs. He said the captured http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/indonesia-denies-ngo-allegations-of-dolphin-whale-hunting/441745

Giraffes die from stress as vandals terrorise Polish zoo
Two giraffes at a zoo in central Poland's Lodz died of stress after unidentified vandals went on a night-time rampage, the zoo's management said Monday.
The vandals broke in overnight Saturday to Sunday, destroying benches, signs and sculptures and hurling pieces of the debris at the animals.
One of the giraffes died within hours of the incident and the second was found dead Monday morning.
"The autopsy of the first giraffe, three-year-old female, found a ruptured heart valve and bruising, a sign of a severe stress reaction," the zoo's deputy director Wlodzimierz Stanislawski told AFP.
"The second, a six-year-old female, was slightly ill before the incident. The stress likely aggravated the illness and finished her off.
"Giraffes are extremely timid. Stress causes a flight response in them. They react the same way to every unusual noise," said http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gwKt___V5A9LK9TV4nsx_EAcoSvA?docId=CNG.e2e54aa5b44f9d99e0dc6a6da2435057.321

Pumas may be on the loose in Scotland as cat corpse is discovered
A DOG walker has stumbled upon the corpse of an animal experts believe may have been a puma near a Scottish beauty spot.
John Robertson, 50, was walking his two dogs along a rural path in Cullen, Moray, with his wife Pauline, on Monday when he found the remains of what appeared to be a cat the size of a large dog.
Just metres from the rotting corpse were the remains of what may have been its last meal – half a dozen mauled seagulls.
Mr Robertson, from Drybridge, Moray, said yesterday: “I was walking my two dogs on Monday morning when we came across all these dead birds scattered about everywhere.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes. I have never seen so many dead birds in one area. They were completely mauled, they had their guts totally ripped out of them lying on the ground.
“Then a little further on we came across a horrible rotting smell which was this big cat.
“It looks like it has feasted on the seagulls and maybe it has fallen down the cliff nearby, injured itself and just lay there till it died.”
But despite its 18-inch-long tail and its sharp teeth, Mr Robertson claimed the animal was http://www.scotsman.com/news/odd/pumas-may-be-on-the-loose-in-scotland-as-cat-corpse-is-discovered-1-2305128

Guzoo wolves allegedly poisoned at private Alberta zoo
The owners of Guzoo are waiting for a necropsy to find out how two wolves died but suspect they were poisoned.
Seven wolf pups are now being bottle fed since their parents were found dead in their pens on Tuesday morning.
The private zoo near Three Hills, Alta., has been a battleground between the Gustafson family and animal rights activists for years.http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/story/2012/05/18/calgary-guzoo-wolves-poisoned.html

Interview with Greenpeace Head Kumi Naidoo 'We Are Losing the Planet'
The environmental movement is losing momentum and governments around the world are ignoring their responsibility for slowing climate change. Greenpeace head Kumi Naidoo, however, remains optimistic. In an interview, he explains his new vision for a sustainable world -- and how the pope can help.
Politicians and business leaders are fond of talking about the new era of the green economy. But in reality, the exploitation of nature is on the rise. The Brazilian parliament is seeking to weaken laws protecting the rain forest. At the climate conference in Durban, South Africa, no agreement could be reached on limiting CO2 emissions. And in developing economies such as China and India, dozens of new coal-fired power plants are in the works.
One government after another is ducking its responsibility when it comes to the fight against climate change. Meanwhile, environmental activists around the globe have proven unable to reverse, or even slow, the trend. Indeed, the green movement seems to have lost momentum. Now, the head of Greenpeace has begun pursuing a new strategy. Kumi Naidoo is shifting his organization's focus to the developing world. He is linking the fight against global warming with the fight against poverty and is increasing Greenpeace's cooperation with large companies.
Critics have accused Naidoo of weakening the Greenpeace brand name. SPIEGEL ONLINE caught up with Naidoo at the http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/greenpeace-head-naidoo-and-the-new-strategy-against-climate-change-a-832709.html

Safari Park to get $9 million gift for new tiger exhibit
An entirely new home for San Diego Zoo Safari Park's Sumatran tigers could open by 2014, thanks to the park's largest pledge ever of $9 million.
Park officials announced Friday that the planned $19.5 million Tiger Trail attraction is assured of the donation as long as an additional $2 million is raised by the end of the year.
A couple who has chosen to remain anonymous pledged to contribute $9 for every $2 in donations to finance the new attraction, designed in part to draw attention to the dwindling Sumatran tiger population. The gift, at most, would be $9 million if the park succeeds in attracting $2 million in donations.
The anonymous donors do not live in the county but for the last six years have supported projects at the zoo, Safari Park and the http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/may/18/safari-park-to-have-new-home-for-tigers-thanks-to/

'It was only a matter of time' - killer elephant's former owner
Mila the elephant most likely intended to kill her keeper at Franklin Zoo, says her former owner.
Robin Ratcliffe, brother of Mila's former handler Tony Ratcliffe, said they warned officials that someone would get hurt if her transition to the zoo was not handled correctly.
"This tragedy was in the making," he said. "We didn't have any doubt. It was only a matter of time."
That time came on the afternoon of April 25, when keeper Helen Schofield, a vet who lived on site at Franklin Zoo and Wildlife Sanctuary, was crushed to death by the elephant.
It is understood Schofield, 42, was killed when Mila picked her up with her trunk before bringing her down, crushing her.
Robin Ratcliffe, founder of Hamilton engineering firm Modern Transport Engineers, said it was likely Mila knew what she was doing.
"Mila possibly had a motive to kill her," he said.
"We won't conclusively be able to say that until we actually see evidence of how it happened, but we've got a strong belief that the elephant more or less set her up.
He said the killing would have been linked to prolonged separation from her former handler, Tony Ratcliffe.
Her transition to Franklin Zoo should have taken at least two years with Tony Ratcliffe's assistance, but instead, she http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/only-matter-time-killer-elephant-s-former-owner-4883645

The Zoo Biology Group is concerned with all disciplines involved in the running of a Zoological Garden. Captive breeding, husbandry,cage design and construction, diets, enrichment, man management,record keeping, etc etc

About Me

I have worked in the zoo world for over 48 years in the capacity of keeper, head keeper and curator. For information related to a zoos, zoo careers and more please see:
http://hubpages.com/_BL29/hub/The-Zoo-Hubs
See also my profile at:
http://www.google.com/profiles/elvinhow